Lots of discussion about this on the syracuse board so it seems many of those fans are accepting the ACC demise.
syracusefan.com
The fact that the suburbs essentially put all their issues and work into hartofrd, with no county authority, was one of the most horrible and cynical political practices we have seen.Somewhat CR related.
"Had those communities all remained part of Hartford, the capital city today would have a population of nearly 300,000. This would put it in the population range of Madison, Wisc., Buffalo, N.Y. and Reno, Nev. and make it the second-largest city in New England, surpassing Worcester’s 206,000 and Providence’s 190,000. If just Hartford and East Hartford merged, as Bronin hinted, the city of 171,000 would be far and away the largest in the state, topping Bridgeport’s 150,000."
Does CT need 169 municipalities? Some say merging makes sense
At a fall press conference about a plan to rebuild Hartford’s highways, Congressman John Larson praised the mayors of Hartford and East Hartford, Luke Bronin and Mike Walsh, for how […]www.hartfordbusiness.com
Those fans aren't aware enough to realize that we've surpassed them in men's basketball a couple decades ago and we've accomplished considerably more than they ever could have dreamed of.Lots of discussion about this on the syracuse board so it seems many of those fans are accepting the ACC demise.
ACC, PAC-12, and BIG alliance / conference realignment
Lots of interesting--even outside-the-box--thoughts in this thread. One that hasn't been mentioned much is the potential of the ACC Network. The PAC-12 basically failed in their attempt to launch a network; the ACC version has been much more successful. With ESPN input, could an agreement be...
The problem with merging a successfully run municipality with a larger unsuccessfully run one is that it penalizes the successful municipality. Perhaps if Hartford fixes its governance issues such that it no longer requires state aid, a merger might be attractive to other municipalities.Somewhat CR related.
"Had those communities all remained part of Hartford, the capital city today would have a population of nearly 300,000. This would put it in the population range of Madison, Wisc., Buffalo, N.Y. and Reno, Nev. and make it the second-largest city in New England, surpassing Worcester’s 206,000 and Providence’s 190,000. If just Hartford and East Hartford merged, as Bronin hinted, the city of 171,000 would be far and away the largest in the state, topping Bridgeport’s 150,000."
Does CT need 169 municipalities? Some say merging makes sense
At a fall press conference about a plan to rebuild Hartford’s highways, Congressman John Larson praised the mayors of Hartford and East Hartford, Luke Bronin and Mike Walsh, for how […]
Is Hartford not successfully run? Or is It’s issues fatal? I would I argue the later.
They will forever require state aid. Such is life in a small city that can't tax half of its properties and relies on reimbursement by the state.
Here is where I think differently than you. ESPN put out a model for UConn and Syracuse during ACC expansion, it was the first and preferred model. The politics within the ACC killed that, that's something ESPN COULD affect but didn't. It has nothing to do with ACC best interest. Today, ESPN would have nixed the deal moving forward if that wasn't what they wanted. ESPN chose not to assist UConn. If they said to the ACC, take UConn, they would have.I understand what you're saying. I just think you're wrong. Your thought seems to be to threaten the companies tax incentives if they can't make a third party do something that is actually against the company's best interest (It was against ESPN's best interest to pay pro-rata for any Big XII expansion at the time of Malloy's request). That's much closer to your pinstriped suit analogy than anything I said or any made-up percentage about the likelihood of certain outcomes.
ESPN did put out a model for UConn and Syracuse during the ACC expansion, it was the first and preferred model. The politics within the ACC killed that, that's not something that ESPN could affect without, again doing something against it's best interest and paying a premium for the content if the ACC does something that it's members thought was against their own best interests.
You and I may share the same opinion about the value of corporate tax incentives (and CTs corporate tax structure)
If Hartford were 4 times the size with 3 times the population its image would be much different to outsiders. It would also actually be much different if it were combined with West Hartford, East Hartford, Whethersfield...Probably even have MLB and NFL teams
Heck, if we just renamed the state of Connecticut “Hartford” it would be the third largest city in the nation!
The thing is, no one else wants to take on that train wreck. Whenever people “if only” Hartford’s problems it is a tacit concession that the problems are insoluble as they are. It is, in essence, an exercise in “magic thinking” which is more appropriate for toddlers, than for governmental planning.
I don't think the towns of Connecticut ever pushed problems into Hartford as there really never was any significant county authority in Connecticut:
That doesn't make any sense. It would be 10 times the size of New York City.
I was with you up until the last sentence. I’m just not sure the XL Center makes any sense. If someone actually put together a plan that had realistic numbers assigned to it that showed there was an opportunity to recoup further investment in the XL center, I’d be behind it, but it seems like the management style of the CDRA is pretty much “I don’t know, let’s give this a shot” coupled with a concerted effort to hide as much of their ongoing loss as possible in the University of Connecticut. Athletic department budget.
I don’t think so. The total population of Connecticut is what 3 million, 3 1/2 million maybe?
The irony is that Hartford needs state aid because of the state. Lots of tax exempt real estate.
I agree that investing in rebuilding the XL Center is not a good financial investment, but the right building could be used much more. Hartford should be in the rotation for NCAA tournament games, both men and women, as well as NCAA hockey tournament games as well as more concerts. And, Hartford does not really have much activity and it needs draws to get people into the city and help with the turnaround. I do think the city is turning around with UConn moving in, apartments being built, and the Yard Goats stadium.
UMASS
We block UMass
After it was mentioned Pitt could go to the Big12 it got me thinking. If the Pac12 survives, the Big12 could add Pitt, Syracuse, UConn & BC and have an eastern group of 6 with WV & Cincy. I envision UVA & UNC to the BIG & Fl State & Clemson to the SEC. Perhaps the Big 12 takes some ACC leftovers. One thing for sure-changes are coming at some point. I love the BE & MSG and Hockey East but we need a football home and more revenue. Can’t wait for MSG Thursday
The XL center became an afterthought as soon as both casinos opened. Now they both have Sports betting on site. I find it amazing that you can't bet on UConn teams in state(full disclosure I don't bet on College sports) yet the UConn Women play at Mohegan Sun. It's the ultimate hypocrisy -It tells me that the state and city of Hartford can't produce a venue to compete with Mohegan Sun.
I don’t know. It seems to me like the days of the big arena may be gone if you don’t have a pro team as an anchor tenant. Concert venues aren’t looking for cavernous space in general and it seems like the casinos are a better venue for a multitude of reasons. I agree for Hartford to have a shot at making its money back. It would need an updated venue rather than throwing another coat of paint on the XL. I’m just not sure that they ever end up with any return on investment from that.
I don’t know that they are particularly worthy of a spot, but if they were, more power to them. Having a decent UMass is good for UConn.We block UMass
Lol, way not to tag someone.
True. There is potential but they have a long way to go to be relevant and there is no commitment by the state, unlike UConn. BC gets little attention even in Boston. It’s a pro state.
Just asking this question. Would the B1G give UConn a look because of two stellar basketball programs, Jim Mora and his football team, and because of UConn’s support of its Ice Hockey program, the new arena, etc. The B1G also gets it hooks into the NYC metro area and the rest of the Northeast.
The State of Connecticut enters into dozens of relationships with businesses which costs state dollars to protect CT jobs and tax base. As does every other state. You disagree with it, that's fine -- you're not alone -- but it's a reasonable and common state action. Is the particular deal a good one? Way beyond my ability to know. Or yours.
Comparing city sizes is a fools errand. You always need to compare metro population.
My point was that the city of Hartford given the metro population is too small geographically at 17 square miles. It should include the neighboring towns.